Friday, November 11, 2011

Note *** The Week In Review normally lists info from Friday through Thursday. This week I won’t be including information for Thursday. Thursday’s report comes in on Friday morning and it’s a Federal Holiday. Also, I’ll be on vacation and will return on the 28th, so the next two Week In Review posts will be abridged versions.

In an odd turn of events at Orlando (MCO), a passenger who was told that her olive oil exceeded the size limit grabbed the bottle and began pouring it upon herself and our officer. I hear EVOO is good for the skin, but yeah… this is frowned upon.

This week, our officers found not one, but two sword canes! One at Westchester (HPN) and the other at Sarasota (SRQ). These are considered artfully concealed items, but to be fare, most passengers are shocked when we show them what was concealed in their cane. Many of the canes are hand-me-downs or they were purchased at a thrift or antique store.

At Los Angeles (LAX), an anomaly was found during screening with a body scanner. The passenger stated he had burns on the inside of his leg, so the anomaly could not be cleared and the passenger was denied access to the sterile area. Law enforcement responded and the passenger later admitted that the anomaly was marijuana. We’re not looking for drugs, but we had no idea what was concealed on the passenger until he confessed. It could have easily been explosives.

Here is how a situation played out at Houston Intercontinental (IAH).

Passenger: I have a bomb in my bag. Officer: What did you say? Passenger: I have a bomb in my bag. Officer: [Looking Alarmed] Passenger: I’m just kidding.

After this was all said and done, the passenger was allowed to rebook, but not with his original airline. He caused his original flight to be delayed by 42-minutes affecting 224 passengers.

After being told he could not take his snow globe on the flight, a passenger at Reno (RNO) thought it best to begin shouting “I am going to blow up the plane and I know how to do it.” For the record, snow globes are prohibited because the liquid is sealed inside the globe and we have no way of screening the liquid without destroying the globe. Also, shouting that you’re going to blow up a plane is never a good thing.

Firearm components, replica firearms, ammunition, unloaded firearms, a bb gun, stun guns, a belt buckle knife, brass knuckles, a brass knuckles belt buckle, a 6” knife, a collapsible baton, a 4” switchblade, and a butterfly knife, were among some of the dangerous items found around the nation by our officers in passenger’s carry-on bags this past week. And believe it or not, not one grenade turned up this week.

Unfortunately these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about these finds. Sure, it’s great to share the things that our officers are finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the throughput is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. On the other hand, there are artfully concealed items.

Artfully Concealed Items: Artfully concealed means that the item was intentionally concealed with the intention of sneaking it through security:

A razorblade was found concealed inside a pack of chewing gum at Indianapolis (IND). Something tells me that’s not so hot for your gums.

A brass knuckle belt buckle was found at New York LaGuardia (LGA).

A knife with a 4 ½” blade was found concealed in the lining of a bag at Midway (MDW).

Our officers found 24loaded firearms in carry-on baggage since I posted last Friday. (Not counting the unloaded and replicaones we found). Here’s a rundown of the loaded weapons we kept off of airplanes this week:

11-4: TSA Officer at IAH detects a loaded 9mm pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-4: TSA Officer at CVG detects a loaded .38 pistol.

11-5: TSA Officer at MOB detects a loaded .22 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-5: TSA Officer at OKC detects a loaded .40 pistol.

11-5: TSA Officer at SGF detects a loaded .38 pistol.

11-6: TSA Officer at IAH detects a loaded .40 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-6: TSA Officer at STL detects a loaded .40 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-7: TSA Officer at BZN detects a loaded .45 pistol.

11-7: TSA Officer at ATL detects a loaded .380 pistol.

11-7: TSA Officer at DFW detects a loaded 9mm pistol.

11-8: TSA Officer at PIT detects a loaded .38 pistol.

11-8: TSA Officer at OMA detects a loaded .380 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-8: TSA Officer at RDM detects a loaded 9mm pistol.

11-8: TSA Officer at STL detects a loaded .380 pistol.

11-8: TSA Officer at DEN detects a loaded .380 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-8: TSA Officer at MEM detects a loaded .22 pistol.

11-8: TSA Officer at LIT detects a loaded .25 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-9: TSA Officer at DEN detects a loaded pistol of unknown caliber.

11-9: TSA Officer at ELP detects a loaded .32 pistol.

11-9: TSA Officer at SMF detects a loaded .22 pistol.

11-9: TSA Officer at MIA detects a loaded 9mm pistol.

11-9: TSA Officer at FLL detects a loaded .45 pistol.

11-9: TSA Officer at ATL detects a loaded .40 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-9: TSA Officer at LAX detects a loaded .45 pistol with a round in the chamber.

11-10: No Data for Thursday due to federal holiday. (Thursday’s report comes in on Friday mornings.)

Body Scanner Finds: We’re not looking for drugs, but that’s normally what we find with the scanners. We don’t know what the anomalies are until we conduct a pat-down and they could very well be dangerous items.

Vial of cocaine discovered in right front pocket. Sacramento (SMF)

Marijuana was detected in the shorts pocket of passenger. Atlanta (ATL)

Cocaine found in the right front pocket of passenger. Sacramento (SMF)

Marijuana detected in the left, rear pants pocket of passenger. San Francisco (SFO)

Marijuana detected in the right, front pants pocket of passenger. San Diego (SAN)

Marijuana detected in the right, upper leg area of passenger. Los Angeles (LAX)

Display of Prohibited Items Found At ACY

Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items in their bag. That’s why it’s important to check your bags before you leave.

We also look for explosives and bomb components as well, but thankfully those are extremely rare and we're happy to keep it that way.

If you’d like to comment on an unrelated topic you can do so in ourOff Topic Comments post. You can also view our blog postarchives orsearch our blog to find a related topic to comment in. If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact a Customer Support Manager at the airport you traveled, or will be traveling through by usingTalk to TSA.

"In an odd turn of events at Orlando (MCO), a passenger who was told that her olive oil exceeded the size limit grabbed the bottle and began pouring it upon herself and our officer. I hear EVOO is good for the skin, but yeah… this is frowned upon."

-----

And was she arrested right away on federal terrorism charges? How do you know she wasn't planning on detonating herself with the olive oil she poured out? After all, there's a distinct possibility that the "olive oil" was actually a liquid explosive. Why else would it be banned from the checkpoint, along with toothpaste and water and snowglobes?

Or, perhaps the liquids ban is just yet another TSA overreaction that is not grounded in any hard science?

Once again, all of the potential threats were found with pre-TSA procedures.

Please explain why we're compelled to disclose our PII to the airlines which have a terrible track record of keeping it private? Why can't we no longer bring in a affordable drink of water? Why must we get scanned and patted down?

(I've still *never* seen a passenger get through a whole-body scan on a single go. They are always sent in for at least one more scan and/or given a partial patdown.)

Quoted:"Here is how a situation played out at Houston Intercontinental (IAH).

Passenger: I have a bomb in my bag. Officer: What did you say? Passenger: I have a bomb in my bag. Officer: [Looking Alarmed] Passenger: I’m just kidding.

After this was all said and done, the passenger was allowed to rebook, but not with his original airline. He caused his original flight to be delayed by 42-minutes affecting 224 passengers. "------------------------Bob, This is exactly what causes the public to say we are useless.WHY, oh why, was this passenger allowed to rebook??

Bob writes: These are considered artfully concealed items, but to be fare, most passengers are shocked when we show them what was concealed in their cane. Many of the canes are hand-me-downs or they were purchased at a thrift or antique store.

First: I'm glad TSA recognizes that not everyone with an artfully concealed item has malicious intent.

Second: I think you want to be "fair" to passengers, not charge them another "fare" ... :)

"Bob, This is exactly what causes the public to say we are useless.WHY, oh why, was this passenger allowed to rebook??"

The passenger was allowed to rebook because he presented no threat to security.

Let's get a couple of things straight:1. The passenger's comments were likely satirical and thus protected.2. "Alarming" a TSO is not a crime and is, in fact, entirely irrelevent to this episode.3. Irritating a TSO is not a crime. 3. Air travel is a right. Before trotting out the tripe often seen here - usually by those represnting themselves as members of the TSA workforce - that it is a privilege, please address the relevant sections of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 and the fact that airines are common carriers.

I certainly hope the original poster is not a TSM. If he/she is, it is clear that training for managers is woefully insufficient.

For those of you flying out of San Diego, I would like to point out that the ladies and gentlemen staffing the Commuter Terminal on Oct 31 were some of the most professional and courteous people I have ever encountered. Please note that I am not referring to the ones working in the main terminal. Several of the TSOs in that group need remedial training on how to treat the flying public.

Of all the guns you stopped, how many were people with valid CCW permits and just made a mistake? These people had FBI background checks, were honest citizens and the TSA turned them into felons because of an honest mistake!

The person with the very dangerous olive oil lost it because people have HAD IT with TSA!!!

I am going to have to fly in a few weeks. Wish I didn't, as I'm tired of the abuse I go through each time with the brace. But, as per usual after each trip, I will probably be filing complaints after this one as well, that will never be addressed.

Never did have anyone contact me after my skin was burned by your "safe swab" over a year ago.

Bob, This is exactly what causes the public to say we are useless.WHY, oh why, was this passenger allowed to rebook??

* Because of whine, whine, whine, of the stockholders and the aircraft operators to their congressional contacts "My god, we would have lost revenue, this would have caused an economical hardship!!!!!"

I believe they should not have been allowed to re-book that day.

It' congress and the senate that created the 9/11 transportation laws and rules to begin with!

GSOLTSO said... Anon sez - "Did everyone see the guy who got a pistol through security at LAX, and the TSA said they did not make a mistake because it is not their job to stop people with loaded weapons!"

I am not certain which incident you are speaking of anon, could you post a link for me so I can see what you are talking about?

I think he(?) is referring to the loaded gun in a checked bag a few weeks ago. Since it was in a checked bag, it supposedly wasn't a threat to the flight.

"Lorie Dankers, a spokeswoman for the TSA, said that while the agency screens carry-on luggage for firearms, it is not the TSA's responsibility to screen checked baggage for guns. The agency only screens checked baggage for explosives, she said."

Of course, bullets don't work by magic- there's an explosive* (gunpowder) in them that, well, -explodes-, propelling the bullet forward. Thus, the TSA did indeed miss an explosive in a checked bag.

Train officers in tactical communication... look at George Thompson's Verbal Judo. its a good start. Following his guidelines will keep checkpoints friendly, civil and most importantly professional and let officers maintain control of situations without losing their cool or becomming argumentative.

Train officers in recognizing travel patterns, profiles and behavior that indicates something is wrong with a passenger. This will allow more time to be spent on high-risk passengers and mean less time hasseling families and business travelers.

Conduct more thourough background checks on ALL your employees, including a psychological review for all frontline employees with a badge.

Stop wasting time waging a war against liquids. Let officers use their own judgement and technology availible to them- the Smiths Responder sets for starters, to determine what if any liquids represent a threat. If someones is drinking something in line, chances are, its not explosive. Taking it away from them just makes the officer look like an idiot. Just because officers can call a bag check on pretty much every single bag for one reason or another, doesnt mean they should. Start applying some common sense and discretion to daily operations and people wont hate TSA as much...

this comming from someone who works at a checkpoint... Do these simple things, and you will 1) start finding alot more prohibited items than before. 2) stop having bad press and 3)garner more cooperation and support from everyday travelers.

Jack said…[[Because the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that citizens DO have a right to fly. It just seems that the TSA forgets that from time to time.]]

I have not seen the ruling, but the fact is that the 9th Circuit Court is the single most highly overturned appeals court in the land. 75% or better. That should cast some doubt about anything they rule upon.

In any case, flying encompasses many options. Private charter, private aircraft, personal aircraft, balloons, hang gliders, and kites! I don’t believe that they specified that flying on a commercial aircraft belonging to a company is a “right”.

Jack said… [[Because the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that citizens DO have a right to fly. It just seems that the TSA forgets that from time to time.]]

I have not seen the ruling, but the fact is that the 9th Circuit Court is the single most highly overturned appeals court in the land. 75% or better. That should cast some doubt about anything they rule upon.

In any case, flying encompasses many options. Private charter, private aircraft, personal aircraft, balloons, hang gliders, and kites! I don’t believe that they specified that flying on a commercial aircraft belonging to a company is a “right”.

What's next? "Yes, subjec... er, 'citizens' have the right to travel, but since trains/buses/cars/bicycles weren't mentioned, we can violate your rights while you're on those, too"?

[[I don’t believe that they specified that flying on a commercial aircraft belonging to a company is a “right”.]]

Is buying a shirt from Kohl's a right? Can the government legitimately prevent you from buying clothing? ...or just certain clothing?

[The answer is 'no', they can't. Just like they can't compel you BUY anything, either ... well, with the possible exception of health insurance ... ].

Then why would you even begin to make the farcical claim that the same principle suddenly evaporates when you start talking about another purchase? Either it is or it isn't; governance in liberty is not a Chinese menu. You [i.e., the government] don't get to pick and choose what and when and why you allow something.

You mentioned elsewhere that the government "has a say - through the FAA [etc]". Do me a favor and pretend you can read: find in the Constitution where the government is ALLOWED to "have a say - through the FAA".

We all know they HAVE the say; but whether they were ever ALLOWED to have it in the first place is a different animal.

As I've mentioned before: just because the Supreme Court allows something doesn't mean it's right. Supreme Court rulings and the Constitution are two different things. Where they differ, the Constitution is right by default; the Supreme Court ruling is simply the policy - and it's wrong.

A sword cane, guns, knives, liquids, screwdrivers, olive oil, water, etc. that no one intends to use for terrorist purposes aren't threats. This is like some pointless adult easter egg hunt. How about you find the terrorists and actual threats and stop THEM?

Jack: "The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that citizens DO have a right to fly."

TSORon: "I have not seen the ruling, but the fact is that the 9th Circuit Court is the single most highly overturned appeals court in the land. 75% or better. That should cast some doubt about anything they rule upon."

You may disagree ... but their decisions are still binding in nine states, and have influence on decisions by other circuits. Don't treat them so dismissively because you happen to disagree with them.

Another Anonymous poster asked…[[What's next? "Yes, subjec... er, 'citizens' have the right to travel, but since trains/buses/cars/bicycles weren't mentioned, we can violate your rights while you're on those, too"?]]

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

An Anonymous poster said…[[So you still haven't found any actual threats.

A sword cane, guns, knives, liquids, screwdrivers, olive oil, water, etc. that no one intends to use for terrorist purposes aren't threats. This is like some pointless adult easter egg hunt. How about you find the terrorists and actual threats and stop THEM?]]

You obviously have a far different idea of what an actual threat is than just about anyone else. On 9/11 they used box cutters and pocket knives, and people surely felt threatened by those things. And no one knows what someone else’s “intent” is, just because we are TSO’s does not mean that we can read minds.

Jim Huggins said...[[You may disagree ... but their decisions are still binding in nine states, and have influence on decisions by other circuits. Don't treat them so dismissively because you happen to disagree with them.]]

Yep, and I’m allowed to disagree with them. Most people do, including higher courts. When they can get below … oh lets say 50%, then I might begin to look at them differently.

"You obviously have a far different idea of what an actual threat is than just about anyone else. On 9/11 they used box cutters and pocket knives, and people surely felt threatened by those things. And no one knows what someone else’s “intent” is, just because we are TSO’s does not mean that we can read minds."

It's you that has the wrong idea. FAA training on 9/11 dictated that flight crews accommodate hijacker demands even, for instance, if it meant flying to Cuba. The required video was called "The Coordinated Response," and was, in my opinion, largely responsible for 9/11 being the catastrophe it ultimately turned out to be.

Never again will an American aircrew allow hijackers to take over an airplane with such trivial weapons. Weapons, I might add, that were allowed under FAA security guidelines.

The original post encapsulates the problem with the TSA. You're largely countering yesterday's threat despite clear evidence that the threat has changed.

"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

I'm always happy to read from the Preamble but are you suggesting that the highlighted section justifies even the creation, let alone the conduct of the TSA? I'll cut to the chase: It does not.

Do you intend to answer any of the operative questions that have been posed to you or will you just continue to cite founding documents to justify behavior that flies in the face of original intent?

"Yep, and I’m allowed to disagree with them. Most people do, including higher courts. When they can get below … oh lets say 50%, then I might begin to look at them differently."

Well, your opinion is one thing but your conduct as a Federal employee is totally different - you are required to abide by the rulings of the court. Also, note that the reversal rate of 75% is absurd. The Ninth is overturned regularly but only a small percentage of cases are heard on appeal.

Despite your ardent beliefs, Ron, the reality is different. Travel on the airlines is a right and, unless you want to return to the 50s, it will remain that way.

Based on your assertion, do you believe that travel on the airlines could be denied on the basis of race or religion? If not, why not?

When they can get below … oh lets say 50%, then I might begin to look at them differently.

---

Well, Ron, when the TSA starts finding more than 30% of guns and bombs in tests we might look at you a little differently. How is that going, BTW? As it is, we consider you to be Keystone Kops. And the numbers don't lie.

I can't understand why people still try to play with TSA agent to the extent that they do. However, some instances are outright ridiculous. For instance, the EVOO incident is alittle ridiculo0us, but to a certain extent, I can't blame TSA agents cuz you can never be too sure anymore. This is why airports and even airlines list items you cannot take with you. As a woman, I was able to actually take my self defense item on board with me once, but not all airports are consistent with security. I wonder why...

SJean said... [[I can't understand why people still try to play with TSA agent to the extent that they do. However, some instances are outright ridiculous. For instance, the EVOO incident is alittle ridiculo0us, but to a certain extent, I can't blame TSA agents cuz you can never be too sure anymore. This is why airports and even airlines list items you cannot take with you. As a woman, I was able to actually take my self defense item on board with me once, but not all airports are consistent with security. I wonder why...]]

Not all airports are consistent with security in part because not all airports are the same. What works at JFK will not work at GJT. They are different. Also, TSA has built in a certain amount of unpredictability to its procedures intentionally. Being unpredictable makes planning an attack very difficult, and our job is far more about deterrence than catching a terrorist. It’s one of the reasons that we have never knowingly caught one. We catch tons and tons of prohibited items each and every day, not no one can tell if what we are catching is a terrorist trying to probe security looking for a weak point.

I know the aviation has their own rules but don't you think that certain things just like some one has already said are not fair when they do not permit you to take your screw drivers and allow knitting needles instead.. And this is really not fair of them.

To all the people sticking up for the guy who was having a joke don’t you realise what he did was stupid? Yes he didn’t have a bomb on him but the point is every time one of these comments are made they have to be checked out and made sure that is a false claim. I bet if you were one of the passengers who was delayed because of this action you wouldn’t be too happy. I am all for a joke but come on...is what he said all that funny?

With so many different weapons or gadget this era produced, some are so small and deadly such as the pin size pistol can be easily concealed. Gov should create a scanning device which somehow can easily detect it. crazy idea..